Note-sheet for autopneumatic piano-players.



M. CLARK.

NOTE SHEET FOB. AUTOPNEUMATIG PIANO PLAYERS.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 16, 1910.

Patented Apr. 9, 1912.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

M. CLARK.

NOTE SHEET FOR AUTOPNEUMATIO PIANO PLAYERS.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 16, 1910.

Patented Apr. 9, 1912.

2 BHEETSSKEET 2.

COLUMBIA PLANOORAPH ccn, WASHINGTON. D. c.

MELVILLE CLARK, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

NOTE-SHEET FOR AUTOPNEUMATIC PIANO-PLAYERS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Apr. 9, 1912.

Application filed March 16, 1910. Serial No. 549,665.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, MELVILLE CLARK, a citizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented new and useful Improvements in Note-Sheets for Autopneumatic Piano-Players, of which the following is a specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part thereof.

The purpose of this invention is to provide an improved form and construction of the perforated controller sheet, sometimes called the note sheet, of an automatic piano player for cooperation with a. correspond ingly constructed tracker board for controlling two separate pneumatic actions arranged for operating upon the same or overlapping portions of the hammer action of a piano for playing respectively a solo and accompaniment, or any two parts of a musical composition, one of which is to be more prominently expressed than the other.

It consists in the elements and features of construction shown and described as indicated in the claims.

In the drawings Figure 1 is a front elevation showing a portion of a note sheet embodying features of this invention in operative position on the edge of the tracker board with which it cooperates. Fig. 2 is a rear ele ation of the tracker board and pneumatic action showing the distribution of the tubes leading from the tracker board to the two actions respectively. Fig. 3 is a section at the line 3-3 of Fig. 1.

In the drawings, A represents the foundation board of an upright piano, and B the manual keys. The hammer action is indicated by the initial portion thereof shown at C. The tracker board, D, has ducts for registration with the perforations of the controller sheet, E, and for connections with pneumatic actions hereinafter described, all arranged in a single row or series, of which the two end portions, 1, 1, are connected with a pneumatic action, F, designed for playing the solo or more strongly expressed portion of the musical composition, the in termediate portion, 2, being designed for connection with a pneumatic action, G, for playing the accon'ipaniment or less prominently expressed portion of the composition. Flexible tubes, 23, extend from the ducts of the groups, 1, to the upper primary pneumatic connections of the pneumatic action, F, as indicated by one of said tubes, 3, shown connected at 3 with the primary pneumatic, 5, of said pneumatic action, F. Flexible tubes, 4, connect the ducts, 2, of the tracker board with the proper primary pneumatics of the action, G, as indicated by one of said ducts, 1, shown in Fig. 2, leading to a primary pneumatic, 6, of said ac tion, G. The two actions, F and G, are mounted and provided with their actuating connections in such relation to the manual keys and hammer action that both of said pneumatic actions are adapted to operate upon the manual keys and thereby upon the hammer action of areas which overlap to a very large extent; that is, so that a very large proportion of the notes which can be sounded by the pneumatics of the action, G, can be sounded also by the pneumatics of the action, F. It is not necessary, however, that the range of the two actions should be absolutely identical, and preferably, and as illustrated, the pneumatics of the action, F, for playing the solo or more prominently expressed portion of the composition are positioned so that they extend over and are adapted for playing several notes higher in the scale than any which can be played by the pneumatics of the action, G, while the pneumatics of the latter action are positioned for playing several notes lower in the scale than any which can be played by pneumatics of the action, F; that is to say, the accompaniment ranges lower and the solo ranges higher than the overlapping area of the two.

In order that the pneumatics of the two actions may operate independently of each other for sounding the notes within their overlapping area, the two actions are respectively positioned so that their motor pneumatics act upon the manual keys at different positions of the length of the latter; and as illustrated, the action, F, for playing the solo or more prominentlyexpressed portion of the composition has its motor pneumatics, F positioned above the portion of the manual keys rearward of their fulcrums and provided with means for operating the manual keys consisting of bell-crank levers, F fulcrumed at their angles respectively and having their upstanding arms, f connected by rods, F, with the motor pneumatics, respectively, their shorter arms, f being engaged under the offset ends, 71, of hooks, H, which are set into the manual keys respectively for affording such engagement. The motor pneumatics, G of the action, G, are positioned above the manual keys so as to act upon the latter forward of their fulcrums, such action being effected by vertically moving strikers, connected with the moving walls of the motor pneumatics, respectively, and extending down for downward thrust upon the manual keys respectively. So far as this invention is concerned, the positioning of the two actions with respect to the manual keys or hammer action may be varied without departing from the invention, and the above-described location of said actions is not in any respect obligatory or essential, it being only necessary that each action should be positioned for operating upon the hammer action directly or indirectly without interfering with the operation thereon of the other action.

The perforated controller or note sheet, E, traveling over the tracker board mouth has its perforations arranged in three groups, corresponding to the three groups, 1, 1 and 2, of ducts of the tracker board, said groups of perforations being denoted respectively, 10, 10 and 20, the groups of perforations, 10. 10, corresponding to the groups, 1, 1, of tacker ducts, and the group of perforations, 20, corresponding to the group of tracker ducts, 2. From the above description, it will be understood that the ducts of group, 2, of the tracker lead to the pneumatics for sounding consecutive notes of the music covering the entire range which is to be covered by the accompaniment; and that the ducts of groups, 1, 1, lead to pneumatics which are positioned for sounding consecutive notes in a single group,-that is, without break or interval,-the highest note sounded by the extreme right-hand duct of left-hand group, 1, being followed immediately by the lowest note sounded by the extreme left-hand duct of right-hand group, 1.

By providing two independent pneumatic actions positioned for operating in large part over the same range of the instrument played, thus affording two independent means for striking each of the notes in the overlapping range, and providing in the same note sheet on different areas thereof perforations for cooperating with the ducts of the tracker board leading to the pneumatics of the two actions respectively. it will be seen that it is made possible to play a piece of music comprising a solo and accompaniment, or any two parts which are to be differently expressed, with the different expressions desired derived from the two independent pneumatic actions respectively, and without employing any devices for modifying the operation of the pneumatic devices in order to produce such difference of expression.

In any instance in which the solo and accompaniment contained at any point the same note,it will be found preferable to cut the perforation correspondii'ig to said note in the solo or part which is to be more prominently expressed very slightly in advance of the perforation for striking the same note in the accompaniment, because the force with which the hammer is operated for striking the string depends upon the force of the blow first struck, and if the lighter blow is first struck, the note will not be any more strongly sounded by a heavier blow following, and on the other hand, if the first blow struck is the heavier one, the note will not be any less prominently sounded by reason of a lighter blow following. In Fig. 1, the perforations, a; and 'y, in groups, 10 and 20, respectively, serve to illustrate this preferred feature of construction, the perforations, a, in group, 1, which controls a pneumatic of the action, F, designed for playing solo having its leading end slightly in advance of the leading end of the perforation, y, in group, 2. Obviously, in such a case, the perforation might be omitted from the accompaniment, but it is preferable to include it so that in any instance in which it might be desired to play the accompaniment alone, the pneumatic action for playing the solo being cut out of service by means well understood for shutting off the air connections, such means not being shown in the drawings, the accompaniment will be complete.

I claim:-

1. The combination, in a pneumatic pianoplayer, of a perforated note sheet, a tracker and sound producing means, the note sheet and tracker being each provided with a plurality of separate divisions, the divisions of the note sheet corresponding to the melody and accompanil'nent parts of the selection to be played and containing, respectively, all of the melody and accompaniment perforations, said last-mentioned divisions separately containing perforations corresponding to all of the tones of the selection to be played, and having a width suflicient to completely cover the corresponding division of the tracker.

2. The combination, with a tracker, and sound-producing means, as herein described, of a perforated note sheet having a plurality of divisions, one of which divisions contains all of the melody perforations and the other of which divisions contains all of the accompaniment perforations, the melody division of the sheet containing perforations corresponding to tones within the compass of the accompaniment.

3. The combination, with a tracker, and sound producing means, as herein described,

of a perforated note sheet having a plurality of divisions corresponding respectively to the melody and accompaniment parts of the selection to be played, the melody and accompaniment divisions containing all of the melody and accompaniment perforations respectively, the melody and accompaniment divisions of the sheet containing perfora tions corresponding respectively, each to tones within the compass of the other.

4. The combination, in a pneumatic pianoplayer, of a perforated notesheet, a tracker, and sound-producing means, the note sheet having aplurality of divisions each of which contains a perforation corresponding to each note of the selection to be played.

5. The combination, in a pneumatic pianoplayer, of a perforated note-sheet, a tracker and sound-producing means, the notesheet and the tracker each having a plurality of corresponding divisions, each division of the tracker having a duct corresponding to each note of the selection to be played.

6. The combination, in a pneumatic pianoplayer, of a perforated note-sheet, a tracker, and sound-producing means, the note-sheet having a plurality of divisions, one of which divisions contains all the melody perforations, and the other of which divisions contains all of the perforations of the selection to be played, the tracker being provided with a series of ducts having a plurality of independent divisions, each of which contains a duct corresponding to each note of the selection.

7. The combination, in an automaticpiano-player, of a perforated note-sheet, a tracker and two sets of pneumatics for operating upon the same sound-producing devices; the tracker having at different portions of its length separate sets of ducts for operatin said separate-sets of pneumatics res ectively, and the note sheet having at di' erent parts of its Width separate sets of perforations for cooperating with said separate sets of tracker ducts, respectively.

8. The combination, in an automatic piano-player, of a perforated note-sheet; a tracker and two sets of pneumatics for operating upon the same sound-producing devices of the instrument, the tracker having at a middle portion of its length a set of ducts for operating one of said sets of pneumatics, and having at portions of its length at opposite ends of said middle portion two parts of another set of ducts for operating the other set of pneumatics and the note-sheet having at the middle portion of its width perforations for cooperating with the said middle set of tracker ducts, and having at outer portions of its Width perforations for cooperating with the other set of tracker ducts.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand at Constantinople Turkey this 28th day of February, 1910.

MELVILLE CLARK.

WVitnesses DoM H. GARICIOPOULO, HAGOP Gr. KnIoPIAN.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. G. 

